Arch-center.



No. 629,636. Patented July 25, I399.

J. 8. WHITE.

ARCH CENTER.

(Application filed. Max. 10, 1899.)

(No Model.)

THE wnms wzrsns co, Pummuwn, msumomu. 0. cv

UNIT D STAT S PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN S. WHITE, on NEW YoRK, N. Y,

ARCH-CENTER.

srnciricA'ridn raining part of Letters Patent No. 629,636, dated .T'ui25, 1899.

' Application filed March 10,1899. SiialNoI 708.520. momma-1 To all whomit may concern I 1 Be it known that 1, JOHN S. \V/HITE, a citizen of theUnited States, and a resident. of New York, in the countyof New York'and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Temporary Centers for Use inthe Construction of 'Floors of Buildings,of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in inafter described, andparticularly pointedout in the claims.

Temporary centers are employed as. supports for the concrete or othermaterial filled in between the floor-beams until said concreteor othermaterial becomes sufficiently hardened, this requiring usually but ashort period of time, and thereupon the centers are removed and used fora like purpose between other floor-beams. The centers are supported attheir ends upon the lower flanges of the floor-beams, which are usuallycommercial I- beams. In accordance with my invention the centers aremade adjustable as to their length, so as to be extended or contractedto meet the conditions of the various spans be tween the floor-beams ofa building, and the sections of the centers carry novel locking means,whereby said sections when adjusted may be securelyfastened together. Myinvention not only enables the adjustment of the center to suit thelength of span between the beams, but facilitates the application of thecenters to and their removal from the beams and insures theirfirmretention in position during use. In accordance with a portion of myinvention I provide means for supporting concrete below the lowerflanges of the floor-beams in order that the lower surfaces of saidbeams may, when desired, be coated with the concrete or other materialsimultaneously with the formation of the arch between the beams.

. The invention and satisfactory means for carrying the sameinto effectwill be fully understood from the detailed description hereinafterpresented, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which-Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through atemporarycenterembodying a portion of my invention, said section beingon the dotted line 2 2 of Fig. 1 and said center being shown in positionto form the archbe tween two floor-beams and as supporting the concreteintermediate said beams. Fig' 2 is a bottom view of same} Fig. 3is aView, corresponding with Fig.1, of the center provided at one end withadjustable supports.

Fig.4. 5

is adetached vertical section through a floorbeam andtwo adjoiningcenters and illustrates the means for covering the lower -sursecuringthe sections of the center in their adjusted position.

In the drawings, A A denote the usual floorbeams, of commercial Ishape,-and between which is filled in the concrete or other material B.

The center is designated by the letter O,

and its purpose is to temporarily span the space between the beams -A-A'and support the concrete or other materialB until the latter hasbecome sufficiently hardened to admit of theremoval of the center.

The center 0 comprises the sections D E, which overlap one another. attheir central portions and are strengthened by the ribs F, whose endsare preferably turned upward to form the feet G, by which the center maybe supported from the lower flanges of the I- beams A, as indicated inFigs. 1 and 3. The middle portions of the section D of the center 0 areslotted, as at H, these slots preferably extending through the ribs F,and the corresponding portions of the section E are provided with theears I, which extend through the slots H of the section D and havepivotally mounted upon them the levers J, which are connected togetherat their outer ends'by 'means of the bar K and at their inner ends areformed with the eccentrics L, which when the bar Kis turned toward theleft from the which eccentrics when the outer ends of the levers J andbar K are turned outward and toward the right to the positionillustrated in Figs. 1 and 3 will bear against the ribs F and operate todraw the overlapping portions of the sections D Etogether in orderthereby to. lock the sections D E in such adjusted position cat'ed innerend of the levers J is clearly.

shown in Fig. 7. The object of connecting the outer ends of the levers Jby means of the bar K is to insure simultaneous movement in said leversJ and to enable'me to lock said levers in theirouterposition (shown inFig. 1-) from a single locking device, which. device in the presentinstance consists of'the locking-bar M, composed of the pivoted arms NO, the former being pivotally secured at its.

inner end to the ear a or the section E, and thearm O at its inner endbeing pivotally secured to theouter end of thearm N and at its outer endbeing bifurcated or forked to pass upon the cross-bar K, connecting thelevers J. The arm N'will be formed of the two separated correspondingpieces of metal, between whose inner ends the ear or will be inclosedand between whose outer ends the arm 0 will be pivoted, as shown in Fig.2, and the arm 0 is provided with the extension Z), carrying atransverse pm at to engage the edges of the arm N when said bar'M is inits extended position, and has its central portions pushed inward towardthe right to cause the pivotal point e to pass beyond the center linethrough the pivot f and cross-bar K- WVhen the levers J are turned totheir outward position shown, the bar M, being then free, may be folded,so that the outer forked end of the arm 0 may be conveniently andreadily passed upon the transverse bar K, and thereupon the middleportions of the bar M will be pressed inward toward the right to theposition illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3, this inward movement of the bar Mcausing the latter to havean outward wedging action against the levers Jand serving not only to firmly press said levers to their outwardposition and cansing the eccentrics L to bind against the ribs F, butalso to carry the pivotal point e inward beyond the normal longitudinalcenter of the arm M, thereby causing the pin (1 to come into contactwith the edges of the arm N and effectually locking the bar M in suchposition that the pressure exerted against it by the levers J will notbe enabled to cause the folding or loosening of the arms N 0. Thus afterthe levers J have been moved outward to draw the overlapping ends of thesections D E together said levers will be locked in position by theapplication to the connecting-bar K of the locking-bar M. The levers Jare secured to the ears I, which are carried by the section E, and theear (1., to which the locking-bar M is secured, is likewise secured tothe section and heinc'e the levers J and locking-bar M will alwayspreserve their due relation to one another, no matter what the{adjustment of the sections D E uponone another may be. The ear projectsthrough the slot 9 of the middle guide 7t, which is secured to thesectionDand has its slotted end projected over upon the section E. Thecars I, projecting through the slots H of the sec-j tion D, and the ear(1, projecting through the slotg of the guide h, constitute efficientmeans ment with one another and for guidingsaid sections in theirlongitudinal adjustment upon oneanother. When the sections D E are tobelengthened or shortened by being moved from or towardone another, thelovers J will be turned inwardto'ward the left, so as to cease to act asa binding agent drawing the sections together, and aftersaidsectionshave been given theiradjusted position upon thelower flanges of theI-beams Athe levers J will be turned to their outward locking p0?sition, and the locking-bar M will be applied.

to the cross-bar K and'forced to its locking for preservingthesectionslD E' in due .alineposit-ion, and thereupon the center willbe sestrengthening-ribs F, turn upward through recesses in the ends ofthe sections D E, and hence they may be readily applied to the uppersurfaces of the lower flanges of theI- beams A, while the ends of thesections 1) E extend below said flanges, as indicated in the drawings.The sections E or both sections of the center, if preferred, may beprpvided with the wing W for the purpose of permitting the covering withthe concrete of the lower surfaces of the I-beams A. The wing W isconnectedwith the section E by means of the bolts m, passing throughelongatedslots 17., formed in said section E, the purpose of the bolts mand slots 91. being to enable the wing W to have a limited hingedmovement and also to be adjusted longitudinally in orderthat therelation of said wing to the lower surfaces of the I-beams may beregulated to suit the conditions to be met. The wing V is preferablycomposed of strips of sheet metal 'r s, which are slotted and connectedby adjusting-screws t. The strips r and s are by means of the screws '15and the slots through which said screws pass rendered adjustable towardand from one another, and thus the width of the wing, W may be adjustedto suit the width of the I-bcam A and also to aid in regulating thespace left between said I-beam and the wing to be filled with theconcrete or other material. The inner end of the wing W will besupported upon the section E, and the outer end of the wing \V willpreferably IIO I be supported upon the lower projecting end clearly inFig. 4;.

of the adjacent center,.as illustrated more 'I have illustrated the wingW as applied to one edge of the section E of I the center 0, not deemingit necessary toillus trate the same construction at the lower edge ofthe section D. The section D may also be, as is apparent, provided withthe-wing W, if desired. It will not be necessary to provide the end ofthe section D with the Wing VV'ifv the next adjoining center to'theright of the section D should be provided with the wing W, since undersuch arrangement the center adjoining the right-hand'end of thesection Dwouldhave the wing W,whose outer edge would rest upon the lowervprojecting-edge of the section .D. .Where'a series of the centers 0 areemployed end'to end in a. building, it

will only be necessary for one end of each,

center to be furnished withthe wing W.

The means above explained for'rende'ring the center 0 adjustable to suitthe varying spans between the I-beams of a'building will ordinarily'besufficient; but, .if desired, the centers 0 maybe rendered furtheradjustable by providing one end of the center with adj ustable feet w,as illustrated in Fig. 3,wherein the center is shown as provided withthe inverted rack 00 and supporting guide-rod y, between which rack andguide is arranged the pin P, connected with the lever Q, whose upper endis of claw shape and engages the lower flange of the I-beam A, While theouter end of said lever Q is engaged by one of the links of the chain R,the latter being suspended from the center. The lever Q is adjustableupon the guide-rod y, and hence may be'moved longitudinally along. saidrod y and along the rack 0;, so that its foot portion to may be enabledto reach the I-beam A wherever the same may be. When the lever Q is notengaged by the chain B, it may be moved freely along the rack m; butwhen the foot to of the lever Q has reached the I-beam A said lever Qwill have its lower end turned upward toward the right and its pin Pbrought into engagement with the rack 00, which, in connection with thechain R, by which the lever Q will be locked in position, will preventthe pin P from moving longitudinally, and thereby the foot to will beheld in rigid position. Inorder to free the lever Q, it is simplynecessary to release the chain It therefrom, and thereupon the lever Qmay have its lower end turned downward and toward the left for thepurpose of releasing the foot 20 from the I- beam. The lever Q and itsconnections will be employed when desired to increase theadjustabilityof the center C, but will not'in all cases be necessary,since the adjustment toward or from one another of the sections D E willusually be sufficient.

The method of using the centers made the subject hereof will probably besufficiently understood from the foregoing description. The center issupported from the lower flanges 'of the I-beams A, and its sections D Emay and when adjusted said sections will be locked in position bythe-downward and outward movement toward the right of the levers-J andthe application to said levers ofv If the lower surfaces of p thelocking-bar M.

i the I-beams are to be covered, the wing W will be' adjusted to meetthe conditions .re-

quired, and if the lowersurfaces of the I- beams are not to be coveredno attention will be paid'to the said wing. If the adjustment of thesections D Etoward one another is not sufficient for the conditions in.hand, a fur-. ther adj ustmentmay besecured by the use,

of the adjustable feet w,'which may of course be at either end of thecenter,but will not be necessary at both ends of the center. In Fig. 1 Ishow one end of the centeras being providedwith the wingfVV, and thisendof the center should not be provided with the adjustable feet w; butthe other end of -the 'center (shown in Fig. 1) may, in lieu of thestationary feet G, be furnishedvwith the adjust able feet w, the latter.for convenience being omittedfrom Fig. land shown in Fig. 3.

' What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

1. .The center 0 adapted at its ends to engage the floor-beams of thebuilding and com- I prising the longitudinal sections 'D, E, whichoverlap and are longitudinallyadjustable on one another and each ofwhich is in the form of a sheet or plate of proper width to directlyreceive theconcrete or like material to be filled in betweensaidfloor-beams, combined with means carried by said center for securingtogether the overlapping face-to-face portions of said sections in theiradjusted positions; substantially as and for the purposes set forth,

2. The center 0 adapted at its ends to engage the floor-beams of thebuilding and comprising the longitudinal sections D, E, which overlapand are longitudinally adjustable on one another and each of which is inthe form of a sheet or plate of proper width to directly receive theconcrete or like material to be filled in between said floor-beams,combined with means for guiding said sections D, E, upon and preservingtheir alinement with one another, and means carried by the center forsecuring together the overlapping face-to-face portions of said sectionsin their adjusted positions; substantially as and for the purposes setforth.

3. The center adapted to engage the floorbeams of a building andcomprising the longitudinallyadjustable sections having the ribs andguide, said guide and ribs of one of the sections being slotted toreceive ears on the other section, combined with means for locking thesections of the center in their adjusted positions; substantially as setforth.

4. The center adapted to engage the floorbeams of a building and havingat its end the wing to pass below the floor-beam, combined with meansfor adjusting said Winglongitudi'nally on the center; substantially asset forth." it

' 5. The center adapted'toengage:the'flo'orbeams of a building andhaving at its end the wing to pass below the floor-beam and com posedofthe adjustable sections whereby said wing may be adjustedlongitudinally; substantially as set forth.- i i a 6. The center adaptedto engage the floorbeams of a buildingand cmnprisingthelongitudinallyadjustable sections, combined with the eccentrics for bindingthe overlapping ends of said sections together and means for lockingsaid eccentrics in rigid position; substantially as set forth. 1

7. The center adapted to engage the floorbeains'ofa building andcomprising thelon gitudinally-adjustable sections, combined with thelever pivotallyse'cured to one section and having the eccentric to bindagainst the other section, and means for locking said lever in rigidposition; substantially as set forth.

8. The center adaptedto engage thefloorbeams of a building andcomprisingthe longitudinally-adjustable sections, combined withthe leverpivotally secured to one section 11 a ceases i and having'the eccentricto bind against the other sectionyand the jointed locking-arms N; O,forlocking said leverl in rigid position, one of said arms having theextension I) and pin d; substantially asset forth."

9. Thecenter adapted toengage thefloorA beams of-a building andcomprising the 1on gitudinally adjustable 1 sections, combined with thelevers pivotally seen red to one section and having the eccentrics tobind against the I other section, the transverse bar connecting saidlevers, and tliejointed locking-arms N, O, havingthe bifurcatedend toengage said bar for locking both of said levers; substantially as setforth.

10. The center havingat itsend the rack and guide, combined withthe'leverhaving the foot and engaging'said'rack,"and the chain forlocking said lever; substantially asset forth.

Signed at New York, in the county of New York andState of New York, this7th day of March, A. D. 1899. l l l l JOHN s. WHITE.

Witnesses:

CHAS. O. GILL, u E. Jos. BELKNAP.

